[Hazelhurst-Newsletter] Hazelhurst May newsletter
Hazelhurst Admin
admin at hazelhurst.coop
Thu May 10 21:56:41 GMT 2012
Here is the Hazelhurst newsletter for May.
Below is the bare bones version - if you can open a PDF file on your
computer, please look at the attachment instead - it's much prettier. If
you'd like to see more pictures of Hazelhurst, do have a look on
Facebook and Twitter.
Newsletter no 8 May
2012
See our website: http://www.hazelhurst.coop/
http://www.facebook.com/HazelhurstCSA
Find us on Twitter @HazelhurstCSA
This e-newsletter brings you a regular update on Hazelhurst Community
Supported Agriculture Co-operative. To subscribe, email
admin at hazelhurst.coop
SOS!! We need plastic bottles to make cloches for little plants
Big pop bottles (not coloured), water bottles, milk bottles (2 litre+
size). At least 10cm diameter. Please keep any you can. Drop them off
at the front of 147 Albert Road, S8 9QX or phone 07541209661 to arrange
collection
Latest news
Our veg box scheme will be starting in June. We will soon be sending
out details and an invitation to join so that you can receive a weekly
box of organic vegetables. Be prepared to order from Hazelhurst!
Events
Sadly, our camping weekend event in April was rained off, so we’ve
rescheduled it. . . .
1st – 3rd June: Camping and Working Weekend at Hazelhurst
Come for some fresh air and horticultural fun! Planting out, sowing
seeds, building a compost heap and more. . . Camping from Friday night.
On Saturday you can join Hedgerow Medicine: A herb walk led by Carol
Burnett, medical herbalist
There will be campfires, sowing of a wild flower meadow, a Tai Chi
session, a moonlight slug hunt and perhaps a visit to the pub. To find
out more and book a place, email stellah231 at gmail.com or phone Stella on
07541209661
More Events. . .
• Hazelhurst Social evening. There will be a Hazelhurst social meet-up
on Wednesday 23rd May at the Rutland Arms (86 Brown St, S1 2BS)
This is for anyone who is involved and/or interested in Hazelhurst to
get together for a drink and a chat. If it’s sunny (ha!) we’ll be in
the beer garden; if there are lots of us we may retire to the upstairs
room; otherwise we’ll be in the downstairs bar. Food is available, and
any time from 7pm is likely to find some of us there. Come and join us!
If people enjoy this, we’ll make it a regular event once a month.
• People might be interested to know that on Thurs 28th June, there
will be a public meeting about Food Sovereignty (7.45pm, Central United
Reformed Church, corner of Chapel Walk / Norfolk Street). The speaker
will be Patrick Mulvany, senior policy adviser to Practical Action and
Chair of the UK Food Group (UKFG), an independent network of UK
organisations concerned with global food and farming issues. For more
information see: http://groups.wdm.org.uk/sheffield/ or contact
o.blensdorf at virgin.net
Report from the land
The cold wet weather of the last few weeks has set everything back by a
couple of weeks. The lane to Hazelhurst was under water and impassable
by car for several days. Most work has been focused on the polytunnel,
although beds have been prepared with green waste compost for brassicas
and leeks, and the rhubarb bed has been planted. The broad beans are
coming on nicely, some still under fleece. Inside the polytunnels are
tray upon tray of seedlings ready to plant out when the weather
improves. Courgettes are in the ground in there, and beds and supports
are ready for climbing beans. Salad crops are coming along nicely.
We are still much in need of plastic bottles for cloches, and any
donations of tools, wheelbarrows, tables, trestles or wooden stakes (2
to 3 inches thick) would be most welcome. Also (in case this weather
continues) we would be really glad of donations of boots, wellies and
rainproof clothing for volunteers.
Volunteering on the land
Report from Stella, Volunteer Co-ordinator
Now is a very exciting time to volunteer at Hazelhurst. The polytunnel
is full to bursting with germinating and emerging seedlings. We are
sowing everything, and potting on lots of seedlings to larger pots.
Keeping them all looked after, and watered is a full time job.
The French and Italian courgettes are now carefully planted out in the
polytunnels. Each has a cloche made by Maureen out of a plastic drink
bottle (we need more of these) to protect them from wee nibblers.
Out of doors we are digging potato trenches. There are 9x70 meter rows
to be dug, and the first 7 are complete. We are working faster as a team
than before. At first we only dug half a trench before lunch, now we can
dig and plant out one trench before lunch and another dug and filled and
covered before we go home.
The wind blew the Mypex off the rhubarb bed so Matt had to re-dig the
trenches around it again to make it fit, and tuck the edges under the
soil. The rhubarb is planted out now and looking good.
The wind also blew the fleece off the broad beans, they are doing fine
now. We had to cover some of them again and weigh down the fleece with
more soil.
When it started bucketing down with rain, we all ran into the
polytunnels, where it was warm and dry. Sowed some more seed, and
pricked out the giant red mustard. We took off our wet jackets and flung
them over the bars of the polytunnels to dry, and exercised to keep
warm.
________________________________________
Ways to get involved
Hazelhurst needs lots of help and there are lots of different ways you
can be involved.
Volunteering on the land – the days are every Wednesday and Thursday
and 2 Sundays per month. Contact stellah231 at gmail.com or phone Stella on
07541209661 for details.
The next volunteering Sunday is Sunday 20th May
Or you can help with administration, committee work, finance, IT,
planning, publicity, marketing, distribution, fundraising, organising
events, training, giving talks, writing newsletters, just joining in.
Contact admin at hazelhurst.coop to discuss. We’d love to hear from you!
We are still looking for volunteers to help staff the Hazlehurst stall
at summer festivals and farmers’ markets. Please email
admin at hazelhurst.coop if you would like to do this
________________________________________
Volunteer’s quote of the month
(After 2 weeks of rain) ‘This must be the trickle down effect’
Interesting stuff about CSAs
In November last year the Soil Association published The Impact of
Community Supported Agriculture . This is the final report of their
project to support CSA, as part of the Making Local Food Work programme.
Its findings, from information gathered from more than 80 CSAs in
England, are very encouraging. Although the number and scale of CSA
projects so far is relatively small, the positive impacts on
environment, health and social life and the economy of farming are
significant. Cheer yourself up! Have a look at the full report at:
http://www.soilassociation.org/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=l3kfHnNhvxg%3D&tabid=373
CSA Management Committee
The CSA Management Committee will next meet on 6th June . Please get in
touch if you have any comments, queries or things you think we should be
discussing.
________________________________________
Who are we?
The Hazelhurst Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Co-operative is
based on a field in the Moss Valley, just beyond the ring road. Our aim
is to grow and distribute organically grown, affordable food for the
benefit of the community, using ecologically sustainable methods and to
protect and enhance biodiversity.
What's your inspiration? Tell us about your ideas for Hazelhurst CSA by
emailing admin at hazelhurst.coop. Have a look at the website
www.hazelhurst.coop
If you want to unsubscribe from this list, and no longer receive
updates about Hazelhurst CSA, you can do so by sending email to:
admin at hazelhurst.coop
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: Hazelhurst newsletter no 8 May2012.pdf
Type: application/pdf
Size: 750658 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <https://www.email-lists.org/pipermail/hazelhurst-newsletter/attachments/20120510/6bbf7501/attachment-0001.pdf>
More information about the Hazelhurst-Newsletter
mailing list